Tesla has quietly launched the next generation of its popular home battery energy storage solution, Powerwall 3 (PW3). While the company has yet to officially announce the new product, CEO Elon Musk has confirmed its existence and the first installations have already started in the US.
News of the Powerwall 3 first surfaced in April of this year when it was discovered that Tesla was working to have the new units approved and certified with some utility companies in the US. At that time PW3 was already certified by some of the companies, but it took another five months for the first installations to begin.
One of those first installations was reported by TMC forum member andy92782, who also shared photos of the new PW3 installed at his house in Southern California. (h/t: @SawyerMerritt)
As we reported earlier this year, the unit is smaller than PW2, and isn’t as aesthetically pleasing now that it is made of die-cast aluminum with weld sealing for the Powerwall 3 enclosure.
While Tesla hasn’t officially announced the specs, the specs listed on the side panel of the PW3 confirm our reporting from earlier this year that it has the same 13.5kWh energy capacity as the existing Powerwall 2. According to our sources PW3 has increased the peak backup power from 10kWh in PW2 to 15.4kW, and also switched from lithium NMC (Nickel-Manganese-Cobalt) battery cells to Prismatic LFP (Lithium Iron Phosphate) cells. The spec sheet below lists the battery type as Li-Ion, which covers a variety of battery chemistries, including LFP, and we believe this is the case as the weight has increased from 114kg 130kg (253lbs to 287lbs), yet the unit itself is smaller than PW2, indicating a heavier battery cell (Prismatic LFP)is being used.
One of the bigger changes is that the PW3 is much easier to install, a fact highlighted by CEO Elon Musk, who added that it is also optimized for high power.
PW3 is optimized for ease of installation & high power, which means that a single Powerwall can serve as an uninterruptible power supply for most homes.
This is a big deal for ensuring that the lights stay on and you can power all your devices in the event of a power outage.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 8, 2023
The one last unknown is if the price has changed. As we noted Tesla hasn’t actually announced the product and it is not listed on their website. As with any new product it will likely be phased in over the next several months as Tesla works to install the last remaining PW2 units before fully switching over to PW3.
